Ecclesiastes 10:20

Do not curse a king even in your thoughts, and do not curse the rich ¹  while in your bedroom; ²  for a bird ³  might report what you are thinking, ⁴  or some winged creature ⁵  might repeat your ⁶  words. ⁷ 

Ex 22:28; Ec 7:21,22; Isa 8:21; Lu 10:40; Lu 12:2,3; Lu 19:40; Ac 23:5

¹ tn Perhaps the referent is people who are in authority because of their wealth.

² tn Heb “in chambers of your bedroom.”

³ tn Heb “a bird of the air.”

⁴ tn Heb “might carry the voice.” The article is used here with the force of a possessive pronoun.

⁵ tn The Hebrew phrase בַּעַל הַכְּנָפַיִם (ba’al hakkÿnafayim, “possessor of wings”) is an idiom for a winged creature, that is, a bird (e.g., Prov 1:17; see HALOT 143 s.v. בַּעַל A.6; BDB 127 s.v. בַּעַל 5.a). The term בַּעַל (“master; possessor”) is the construct governing the attributive genitive הַכְּנָפַיִם (“wings”); see IBHS 149-51 §9.5.3b.

⁶ tn The term “your” does not appear in the Hebrew text, but is supplied in the translation for smoothness.

⁷ tn Heb “tell the matter.”